The Media Convergence Laboratory (MCL) is a partnership between the Institute for Simulation and Training, the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and the Digital Media Department at UCF. Its research focus is on the use of mixed reality (the seamless merging of real and virtual content) to create experiences that engage and improve the performance of users. Current applications of the lab’s research include situational awareness training, teacher screening and training, creative collaboration, experiential entertainment, free choice learning, naturalistic decision-making, virtual heritage social networks and cognitive and physical rehabilitation. Current funding is provided by the National Science Foundation, the US Department of Education, the Office of Naval Research, the Army Research Development Engineering Command and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research. Industrial partners include Canon, Japan, the Virtual Reality Medical Center and Simiosys LLC.
MCL’s facilities consist of a 2500 square foot high-bay testing area and about 1500 square feet of office space. The lab has a variety of graphics workstations along with five Canon Coastar HMDs (three owned and two loaned) and five tracking systems (a Polhemus magnetic tracking system, a NaturalPoint camera-based tracking system and three Intersense hybrid acoustical/inertial tracking systems – two IS-900s and one IS-900PC). We also have an isolated laboratory acoustically treated for audio production, with its own complement of synthesizers and audio capture equipment. We have a traditional “green screen” video capture area and a portable blue screen/retro-reflective screen area in which we can deliver augmented virtuality experiences (ones that embed users in virtual settings). In collaboration with local industrial partners, MCL also has the capabilities to create theatrical scenery that is used in complex Mixed Reality scenarios. Finally, we have two motion capture research systems and a 3d laser scanner. One mocap system does not require line-of-sight, and so can acquire articulated motion from anywhere, including under and behind objects that would block a traditional capture device. The other mocap is provided by the NaturalPoint pose tracker. The 3d laser scanner is a top-of-the-line Riegl Z420i that can capture point clouds and texture maps on areas as large as several football fields. The supporting software allows us to stitch together multiple overlapping scans, e.g., ones involving connected rooms.